Trailblazing swimmer Lia Thomas has spoken out against sporting bans that target transgender athletes, describing them as a “gut punch” that continues to weigh heavily on her.
Thomas made the comments in response to World Aquatics’ decision to restrict trans women from competing in the women’s category. The policy, introduced in 2022 by the international swimming governing body (formerly known as FINA), requires transgender athletes to have transitioned before the age of 12 — or before reaching stage two of male puberty — to be eligible for women’s events.
Trans athletes who do not meet this threshold are relegated to competing in either the men’s division or an “open” category.
‘Aching Grief’ After Court Defeat
Speaking to WHYY earlier this month, Thomas admitted the ruling still hurts:
“It was a gut punch and it still hits me sometimes.
It’s aching grief at not being able to do the sport that I love.”
The 25-year-old athlete lost her legal case against World Aquatics last year after the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the policy. Thomas and others have criticised the criteria as unrealistic, calling the rules “nearly impossible” for trans women to meet.
A History-Making Career
In 2022, Lia Thomas became the first openly transgender athlete to win a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I title, triumphing in the 500-yard freestyle event.
Her victory sparked outrage among right-wing commentators, who subjected her to online abuse and transphobic rhetoric. Among her critics is fellow swimmer Riley Gaines, who tied with Thomas for fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle that same year. Gaines has since emerged as a vocal advocate for trans-exclusionary policies, even making headlines for claiming that trans women hold an “unfair advantage” in games like chess.
Living Authentically
Despite the backlash, Thomas says she has no regrets.
“I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat,” she said.
“There’s just no substitute to living and being your authentic self.”
She acknowledged the courage it takes to be an openly transgender athlete in the face of widespread discrimination:
“It unfortunately takes courage because of the many difficulties there are surrounding being openly trans, especially being an openly trans athlete, but it’s absolutely worth it.”
Thomas also highlighted the hypocrisy in how trans women are treated compared to cisgender women:
“You don’t get to say: ‘You can be a woman in these situations, but not in these’, because you would never do that to a cis woman.
A lot of people think: ‘It’s OK that I can sort of be the arbiter and pick and choose when I see [transgender women] as women’.”
